Swans
by jen1490
Summary: Because love caused him pain. Because of love, he came to hate everyone, especially her. But he can't keep hating her forever, right? AU
1. Chapter 1

_**note:**_ ah, this was inspired by_ Unkle Bob's 'Swans'_. it's a good song, recommend you hear it.

. . .oh and i don't own any 'Naruto' characters or 'Unkle Bob' or their song 'Swans'. . .

* * *

_By my side  
You'll never be_

Sasuke Uchiha was unlucky in every sense of the word when it came to love.

So, so unlucky, that it went pass horrifying to the point that it was laughable.

He could still remember the first time he had consciously said those three simple words. He was six and it had been to a tiny lima bean plant his kindergarten class had been assigned to watch grow. After he had sang it those words, he had forgotten his tender plant outside and had just returned to retrieve it when a big, black crow swooped down and snatched his beloved plant right in front of his innocent eyes.

He cried to his mother that night.

The next time he said _those_ _words_ was when he was nine and it had been to his puppy of fifteen months. Afterward, that puppy had escaped the safety of his family's backyard and was run over by a speeding truck. The dog died an agonizing death in front of the boy.

He cried to his mother for the whole week.

It was after that week when he said _those_ _words_ again, this time, to his mother as a thank you for comforting him. The woman replied with a smile and a hug. Coincidentally, his parents had taken a plane ride the following evening. After twenty-four hours of silence from their parents, the phone rang and the little boy answered in hopes that it was his mother. Instead it was the police saying that the plane that his parents had been on had malfunctioned and his parents were declared dead.

He was crushed when he heard the news and he cried to himself.

Now he was left alone in the world with just his older brother of fifteen. The next few years were rough for both of them. They journeyed from adoptive family to adoptive family, constantly causing problems when they refused to be separated. All the families wanted the cute little Sasuke but none wanted the older teen that came along with him. So instead of Sasuke leaving his older brother for a better chance of adoption, he stuck by Itachi, even when his brother insisted that he let himself be adopted.

They stayed at the orphanage until his older brother turned eighteen and was forced out with a twelve-year-old Sasuke following closely behind. It was a year later, when Itachi had returned from his third job exhausted that Sasuke had dared to utter _those words_ again. Itachi's determination and wasted figure was what motivated him to say it. He was thirteen and it was the last time he said it. His older brother smiled just like his mother had done so long ago and returned those words to him.

That morning, Itachi didn't wake up.

It was then that his young mind finally made a connection. Every time he had said _those words_ something died. From the beginning of his memories to the point where his older brother passed away, it had always happened after he allowed those three words to slip from his mouth. His dog, his parents and now his older brother.

Love had stolen them from him.

He was alone because of _love_.

And it was on Itachi's grave that he swore never to love again. He swore to never allow anyone near him, never allow someone to befriend him. He swore that instead of love, he would hate.

His heart would be dead from that day onward.

* * *

"Sasuke? Want to come eat lunch with me?"

It was _that_ girl again.

He glanced at the girl that had spoken to him. Long pink hair, bright emerald green eyes, pale ivory skin and a smile that rivaled the sun.

Oh yes, he remembered her.

She had been silently watching, more like stalking, him ever since his third year of primary school. Back then he would politely refuse her as he did with every girl that asked him that same question, although on some rare occasions he humored her and ate his lunch silently sitting next to her. That was when his mother was still alive, when she had heard of a persistent 'admirer' and encouraged her little boy to 'befriend' the girl.

Now his mother was dead, his father was dead, his brother was dead, he was alone and he didn't give a fuck about some stupid fangirl.

"Don't talk to me," he growled in the coldest tone possible. He turned away from her to stare outside the window to the left of his desk.

"Please, Sasuke?" Dear lord, he could hear the desperation in her voice. It made him sick. "Like we used to when we were little?"

He clenched his fists. The girl had believed that she was special? Just because he spent fifteen minutes for a few days of the month with her years ago? She was ridiculous if she thought he held any positive feelings for her. He hated her, just like he hated everyone else, perhaps even more than everyone else.

He turned back to her slowly in time to catch her eyes light up with hope. Oh how he will enjoy crushing her spirit.

"You believe we were friends don't you?" He watched her pretty face slowly change as his words sunk in. "I never liked you and I will never like you." He felt his dead heart grow lighter with empty giddiness as her pain grew more evident. "I only pitied you because everyone hated your ugly forehead and your ugly pink hair. No one liked you." He watched those bright green eyes dim yet sparkle with unshed tears. His dead heart rejoiced. "And just like then no one likes you now." The first tear fell. "Because just like then," he hissed, "you are still the same, stupid, insecure, people-pleasing doormat that can't like herself unless everyone else does first." Her tears began to form two rivers down her red cheeks. "But you know what? Unlike then, I don't pity you, instead," he paused as he basked in the glory of her emotional pain, "I hate you."

He watched with satisfaction how her face twisted with hurt, cheeks puffed red and lips quivering. Her eyes were pouring tears and her body trembled. He enjoyed every second of it, especially when the whole class turned to watch the exchange. Any normal girl would dislike, even hate him, after all the humiliation he put her through but Sakura was no normal girl.

"But-" she choked on her own spit, "but, Sasuke, I- I- _I love you_."

Those words made rage boil in his blood. This girl had the atrocity to love him!

"How many times will I have to tell you, _I hate you_. Don't talk to me, don't even look at me." He sent his most terrifying glare at her, and was pleased when she took a step back. "_You disgust me_."

Her eyes widened and she simply stood in front of him, frozen as if time had stopped moving.

He ignored her presence and went back to staring out the window, the joy of causing her pain quickly losing its appeal. He was vaguely aware of when she retreated to her own seat to cry out her grief at his refusal.

The entire class was glaring at him with distaste. They didn't like him, but he didn't give a fuck.

She deserved it.

Who did she think she was to declare she loved him?

She knew nothing of him, nothing of what he had suffered through. She knew nothing of his pain. Her little life was perfect. She had both parents, she had never suffered a loss or extreme pain as he had.

There was no way she loved him.

They were thirteen, they were children. Children didn't know anything about life, even less of love.

He spent the rest of that class time staring out the window, contemplating the contrast between the sunny day outside to his dark, gloomy soul. The anger slowly died, leaving that familiar emptiness in his chest by the time the final bell rang, dismissing the students.

That day he went to the counselor and switched out of all the classes he shared with Sakura.

It would be another three years when he would speak to her again.

_By my side  
You'll never be  
You'll never be_

* * *

_totally forgot to say that this will be a short multi-chap fic_, _at least three to four chapters_


	2. Chapter 2

**note:** bah ha ha, i'm alive! sorta. . . continuing on

* * *

_cause im fake at the seams _  
_ lost in my dreams_

It was during his second year of high school when that pink-haired girl dropped momentarily back into his dull existence.

In all honesty, he had forgotten she even existed. He didn't even realize that they shared four classes together until three weeks into the new school year when she had 'accidentally' stumbled into his desk. He was slightly surprised. There was only one person who had dared to disturb him and that bumbling idiot wasn't an early riser.

"Sorry, Sasuke."

He heard her mumble with her head down, her pink hair hiding her face from him.

He didn't reply, instead he just studied her, trying to recall from where exactly did she seem so familiar. He watched her quickly take her seat near the windows. His mind raced, attempting to remember where he had met this girl and how she knew his name.

_"I- I love you." _

There it was.

The girl that had confessed to him in his eighth year of school. And the same one he had shot down with a flaming arrow. He remembered her tears and how she had sulk days afterward. And he remembered the creative insults he received from everyone who had witnessed his rejection of the girl after class.

He glanced at her.

She had changed. Her face matured slightly, the baby fat around her chin disappeared but her cheeks were still puffy with youth. Her pink hair had grown longer up to her lower back. She didn't wear that red band in her hair anymore. Her body was slimmer and longer, more graceful than he remembered. She seemed quieter than before, perhaps a bit more withdrawn.

"Hey you, bastard!"

The loud voice drew everyone's attention, including the girl whom he had been staring at. Their eyes connected for the first time in years. He once again saw the bright green he remembered. He quickly looked away and went back to reading his book.

"And a happy good-fucking-morning to you, too, jerk." He ignored the person. A feeling within him told him that he was in for an annoying first period. "So anyhoo, I was with Kiba the other day and you know what! He told me Bushy Brow made a move on his girlfriend! You know Bushy Brow, right? Rock Lee, the weirdo with the Beatles' haircut? Yeah, of course you know him. So Kiba's all like jealous and wants to beat the guy up. I tried to calm him down but then he tried to pick a fight with me. He's a cool dude but lately the dude's been pissing me off. Really, I don't know how Sakura can stand him."

_Sakura._

Yes, that was her name. She had a boyfriend?

He turned the page of his book, completely ignoring the blond boy next to him talking five hundred words a second.

So much for loving him.

The girl never loved him, she was simply infatuated with his looks, like every other girl near him.

"So how was your weekend? Kakashi take you to that museum exhibit you were talking about?"

Sasuke spared the blond a glance. How did the idiot know he had wanted to go to the exhibit? He never spoke about it, he hardly spoke at all. It must have been when he was looking at the poster in the hallway, the idiot must have caught him studying it and figured that he wanted to go.

He turned back to his book, dismissing the blond.

It didn't matter if Naruto was the tiniest bit more attentive than he believed. The idiot still earned his hate.

Two minutes passed before the blond finally gave up on him and turned to face the front.

That was his life.

Ignoring everyone who tried talking to him and keeping to himself. Usually after he brushed them off a couple times, people stopped trying. Then there were people like Naruto, the blond idiot. He persisted, he clung to Sasuke, followed him everywhere like a puppy, all just to befriend him. The idiot persisted so much that he had snapped and did what he had done to Sakura.

He insulted and degraded Naruto.

That time Naruto almost cried and he believed that he was finally rid of his last annoyance. The next day however, Naruto was his usual clingy self, as if Sasuke had never torn out his heart and fed it to the dogs.

And that's how his attempts to remove Naruto ended.

Even now Naruto still chose to hang around Sasuke instead of his other friends because Naruto had other friends, _lots_ of other friends. But he chose to spend his time with the one person who hated everyone and in turn, everyone hated back.

What a fool he really was.

The day went by quickly yet painfully slow at the same time. When the final bell rang, he slowly gathered his belongings and left.

School was a routine, one that never changed.

* * *

Sasuke entered the small house where he lived and walked toward his room, passing the living room and the kitchen.

"How's school, Sasuke?"

A gray-haired man stood in the kitchen with a soda can in his hands. This was his guardian, Kakashi Hatake, a man who was one of his older brother's good friends. Sasuke paused briefly at the kitchen doorway, saying nothing but then continued on his way. He reached his room and collapsed on his bed.

Another day done. Another day starts.

* * *

He felt someone poke his shoulder.

"Do you need a pencil, Sasuke?"

_It was Sakura. _

They were in math class and in an uncharacteristically fashion he had forgotten his materials in his locker. Unsurprisingly, no one had wanted to let him borrow a pencil. He glanced at her then at the pencil. Only this girl would think of lending him something when no one else would.

"No."

He turned away without another word, deciding to just stare at the whiteboard until the class ended. This was his life and it would stay this way until death came to claim him.

Or at least he believed so.

_and i want you to know _  
_ that i i cant let you go_


	3. Chapter 3

**note:** whoa, almost done! a warning, if you heard the song '_Swans_', then you know this will not end well.

* * *

_and youre never comin' home again _  
_ and youre never comin' home again_

Senior year in high school is anticipated by everyone.

The last year of high school.

It had gone by so fast.

He stood by his neat locker, staring down at the neatly folded pink paper that had fallen out. He knew what it was, the color betrayed it's contents.

_A love letter. _

He slammed his locker shut and left to his class without even giving the note a second glance. Around the beginning of each school year, he always received love letters from new girls who didn't know his true personality. Eventually they would hear the gossip and listen to what their older, more experienced classmates say about the elusive Sasuke Uchiha, the rude, but good looking bastard who hates everyone.

He walked by the empty hallways wasting the few free minutes in between passing periods. He heard a low grunt as he passed a janitor's closet.

"Why are you always like this?" The low question was followed by a soft whine. "Why won't you let me touch you? Don't you love me?"

He frowned and kept walking. The drama of the two locked in the janitor's closet was none of his business.

The day flew by without any problems. . . until now.

He stared at the short girl standing in front of his locker. She was blushing and twiddling her fingers, just like a nervous freshman would do.

"Did you read my letter?"

It was from her?

"No."

The girl looked disappointed. "Oh. . . well, I have another one." The girl searched through her bag before pulling out another neatly folded pink paper. "I hope you can read it and tell me what you think afterward." She held it out to him timidly. "I know seniors don't really pay attention to freshmen, but I would really like to get to know you. . . Sasuke."

So she knew his name, so she must have heard the rumors. And still she confessed her 'undying' love for him?

_Pathetic._

He snatched the letter from the girl's hand and turned his back to her. Suddenly, he didn't feel like leaving his books at his locker anymore.

"I'll see you around, Sasuke!"

He saw what he was looking for just a few steps away. And, not waiting to be out of the girl's sight, he took the letter, tore it in half and threw the pieces into the trash bin. He heard a low gasp as he exited the school building.

The months dragged by, the love letters stopped coming and his life went back to the same routine.

* * *

It was the end of senior year and the eagerly awaited _graduation_ was upon him.

The ceremony was long and dull, but something managed to spark his attention for a moment.

That girl, the one with the pink hair, she was valedictorian of their class? She gave the class' speech and she. . . she was _grinning_?

He stared at the girl from his position among the crowd of seniors. He had never, not once seen the girl grinning. Smiling? Yes, when they were children and on that fateful day such a long time ago when he crushed her young heart. After that day, he never witnessed one of her smiles again.

Now as he watched her up at the podium, she seemed so happy, so enthusiastic about the future. She wasn't that depressed little girl who had depended so much on his attention. He felt something stir in his vacant chest. It was as if his hate toward her didn't affect her anymore.

Time passed and before he realized it, everyone had stood up and thrown their caps into the air as the final tradition of graduating.

It ended.

High school was officially over and done with.

Next was either more school or work, he hadn't decided yet.

"Sasuke." He felt a strong hand on his shoulder. It was his guardian, Kakashi. "I'm proud of you. Although, I would have bet the house that you would have made at least the honor roll."

"It's done, that's all that matters." Sasuke turned and walked toward the exit, hoping to avoid the only annoyance left in his life.

"Yo, bastard!"

Too late.

The next twenty minutes were sent standing in front of a camera at Naruto's side. He ended up in dozens of pictures with people he didn't know. Naruto was always welcomed but the strangers' grinning faces always faltered when Naruto pulled him in. It was irritating.

It was when the blond was talking to a dark-haired girl that he had managed to escape.

As he fled from Naruto, he saw Kakashi chatting and laughing with a couple of the teachers. The old man had waited for him. That thought sent a strange feeling through his chest. After so many years of ignoring Kakashi, the man was _still_ willing to be there for him.

_No_, he had to put those thoughts aside.

He wouldn't allow Kakashi to sneak his way into his empty heart. Because if they became close and he said those words once more, who knew what would happen.

In his distracted state, he nearly collided with somebody but he managed to lean away and instead just bumped into that person's shoulder.

"Hey! Watch it-" He glanced into emerald eyes, ones that he had been so sure he would never see again. "Sasuke?" He turned away and continued walking toward the exit. "Sasuke, wait." He didn't stop. "Wait." He felt her tug at his suit, yet he still continued on. "_Sasuke_!" She hissed and planted her feet firmly on the ground. He stopped, surprised at her strength. "Can you please just listen to me for a second?"

He glanced at her. She, like him, had taken off her graduation gown and was wearing a pure white dress with pearly white low heels. And with her pink hair flowing behind her and her flawlessly made-up face, she resembled an angel.

"I've wanted to get something off my chest for the longest time." She took a breath and held his dark gaze. "Sasuke, I know we didn't end our friendship on the best grounds and I'll forever regret that it couldn't be saved." She paused for a moment. Sakura was still keeping eye contact with him and he couldn't deny that he was impressed. Even Naruto was only able to hold his gaze for a few seconds before crumbling under the weight. "But. . ." He saw her cheeks slowly grow red. "Sasuke, I-," she broke eye contact for a moment before catching it again, "Sasuke, I still love you." He felt his heart jolt. "God, Sasuke, _I'm still in love with you_."

Her green eyes sparkled as if she would start to cry. Those same green eyes that he had stared into when she made this same confession years ago.

Heat began to spread through his body. He clenched his jaw and the muscles in his neck tensed. This girl, anger flooded his veins, this girl still loved him, she was still in love with him. How? When he had succeed in pushing everyone away, she was still there! _How_? How did someone brush off harsh insults, an indifferent attitude, complete and untainted hate?

She just like Naruto.

"That's it." Sakura dabbed her fingers at the corner of her eyes. "I just wanted to tell you before I never saw you again. I'll miss you, Sasuke."

This pure white angel with a heart as soft and warm as a summer breeze was in love with him, a black-hearted demon.

She turned to leave but he caught her arm and pulled her toward him.

And that was when he gave his first kiss away.

She was the angel in love and he was the hateful demon. As the demon, he would show the beautiful, naïve angel how truly awful life could be.

That evening he took their first time with force and aggressiveness, without kindness and gentleness, without regard for her pain.

Because that's how he was and that's how life treated those in love.

_by my side you'll never be _  
_ you'll never be_

* * *

_oh and one more thing, forgive any errors, they are not done intentionally_


	4. Chapter 4

**note:** the last one. the ending ain't pretty!

* * *

_I wanted to tell you I'd changed_  
_I wanted to tell you that things would be different this time_

Time didn't really mean anything to him when he was younger.

The days all blurred together and it was difficult to tell when a new week had begun. Lately, time had started taking on a new meaning.

He was twenty-six and it seemed as if time was against him.

_I see you_  
_ You see me d__ifferent__  
_

"Sasuke, it's time we went our separate ways."

He stood frozen at the threshold of his, no, their home. He had come home from work to find his girlfriend of nearly nine years standing in front of two big, red suitcases.

"I'm leaving. For good this time."

He watched the woman bend over to pick up her belongings. This wasn't supposed to happen. He had worked long and hard with his therapist in order to stop her from leaving, in order to say _those words_ to her. Those words that she had so desperately wanted to hear. He would finally be able to say them to his beautiful angel.

He blocked her exit as she tried to step past him.

"You can't."

"Sasuke, please don't make this harder on yourself." His wasted angel glared at him. Her eyes were like jade, cold and glassy.

"You can't," he repeated. "Not yet, listen to what I have to say first."

He watched her bite her lip and a bolt of lust travel down his body.

She release a tired sigh. "Why? Why would this time be different than the others?"

"Because it will. I've changed." He searched through his suit's pockets to find that little box he had been saving for the perfect moment.

It was now or never.

"_I've changed, Sakura._" He pulled out the small velvet box. "I've been seeing a therapist," he saw her eyes widen, "together with Kakashi and Naruto, they've. . . helped me. I've. . . managed to put what happened behind me. Like I've said, I changed and I changed _for you_." He showed her the small box and what was inside. Her sparkling eyes grew even wider. "I changed because. . . because I love you, Sakura Haruno. _I'm in love with you_." She dropped her suitcases in utter shock. "God, do I love you so much."

His heart clenched when she began to cry.

He had said it.

Those words that had turned him into a heartless bastard such a long time ago.

Through these nine years, when he had been stuck in his own world where there was no such things as forgiveness or kindness or love, she had stayed with him. There had been a few times when she had threatened to leave him but she never made it passed the front door. She stayed, braving through all those horrible times when he would be cruel towards her, when he would completely ignore her needs, ignore her existence and when his rough and demanding appetite became too painful. He had claimed the woman but made no effort to satisfy her in any way. Still, through all those horrors she stayed with him. Simply because she loved him so much.

And now, now he could finally return those feelings.

"Oh, why, Sasuke! Why!" She covered her face with both hands. "Why did you have to say those words now? Why didn't you say these words years ago?" She finally looked at him. Her face was puffy and red, the tears trailing down her cheeks fell to the floor. "Why couldn't you tell me earlier?"

Dread filled his heart. He felt that she was about to say something that would break him and it scared him. "Sakura-"

"Sasuke, don't." She wiped her eyes. "I love you."

His heart jumped with joy.

"I love you but I can't do this anymore. I can't marry you. I have to end this before it finishes us both." She grabbed her suitcases once again. His heart cracked. "Everything is different now. And we have been through a lot. Like you said, you've changed and I've changed as well."

His heart broke.

"That's why I'm being strong and I'm ending it for the both of us." She brushed past him and right before she left, she whispered, "I'm sorry."

That's when his heart shattered.

And the memories came flooding back.

_A six-year-old little boy with black hair and big black eyes watching a crow take his beloved plant away. _

_The same little boy now an eight-year-old watching his first and last pet dog die at his feet. _

_The same boy receiving news of his parents death. _

_That same boy now thirteen years old rushing happily to his older brother's bedside only to find him not breathing and without life. _

_That same boy now a twenty-six year old man broken, laying on the floor because his first and only love left him after he had said those words. _

The words of his therapist drifted into his mind, "_Don't be afraid of your feelings Sasuke. It's good to be in love and it's good to say those words to the one you are in love with. You'll feel lighter if you tell __her._"

It took so long to finally believe in those words. It had taken even longer to find the courage to say those words. And when those words were finally released from his mouth, his bad luck made it's appearance.

_I love you. _

Yes, Sasuke Uchiha was unlucky in every sense of the word when it came to love.

_You tell me that you love me but you never want to see me again_  
_You tell me that you love me but you never want to see me again_

* * *

_that's it  
it was so hard making a repentant Sasuke lose like that but that's how it was planned.  
Again please forgive any mistakes.  
thank you for reading!__  
_


	5. END

**note:** i decided to give a proper ending to this. a happier one

* * *

He had always believed that he had been cursed. Was he destined to not be emotionally satisfied? Had his parents angered some witch and that woman had taken her anger out on their unborn child? Or was it simply what his best friend said, "Shit happens"?

In his younger years, this would not have mattered at all but now, everything needed an explanation, whether it was fate or bad luck or really just shit happening. He wanted an answer.

"So, you coming to the baby shower tonight?" He turned his attention to the person sitting behind the big desk. "You don't have anything to do, right? You should come."

"Off my chair, Uzumaki."

"Aw, come on. This thing is so comfy. It's way better than the ones we have to use." The blond man spun slowly in the chair.

"That's because I work for it. Now off my chair and out of my office."

Naruto stood up and walked around the desk toward Sasuke. "Man, you work too much. You need to relax. Come to the baby shower. My cousin's gonna be there. Who knows, you might like this one."

"Out."

The blond didn't listen. "Sasuke. You have to get over her. Sakura _left _you. It's been years. She probably has moved on, you have to as well."

"_Out._"

"Fine." Naruto began walking to the exit but paused at the door. "Just think about it, alright?"

Sasuke released a sigh when Naruto left.

The idiot was right. He needed to get over his ex. The woman left him four years ago and yet he still was single. He hadn't had a date, well, since ever. He never had anyone else besides Sakura. He just couldn't bring himself to care about another woman.

When she left, he was a disaster. He was broken. There was nothing in his life but black sorrow. He nearly collapsed back into the hateful bastard he used to be when he was younger. Fortunately, with the help of many _nosy_ annoyances, that did not happen.

But he could never really move on.

He bent his neck and the joints popped. What he did need was to relax. Maybe head to that one park where it was relatively empty and quiet. Then perhaps head over to the baby shower to see if Naruto's cousin was worth a shot.

* * *

It wasn't everyday that she passed through this street. After moving from the city four years ago, returning was surprisingly not uncomfortable. It was the opposite. It felt heartwarming. So when she walked this particular street, she wasn't hit with intense nostalgia as she would have thought she would be. The feeling that invaded her being was contentment.

At thirty, nearing thirty-one, she was just another woman, on the path of her life. A path that is filled with uncertainty, with what ifs, what could haves, and what isn't.

She paused at a streetlight.

She glanced both ways before crossing the street to a small park.

This was were she saw someone familiar sitting on a red bench. Her heart lurched uncomfortably. Someone who she hadn't seen or heard of since she left the city. Time seemed to had stopped for him. He looked the same as she had last seen him. He was dressed casually in a white button-up shirt and black slacks. He had his eyes glued to a thick book and a pair of reading glasses on.

She hesitated, nervous about speaking to him for the first time in such a long while, but she pushed her fear aside. This was good for her to find him alone. "Sasuke."

He glanced up when he heard his name and surprise filled his handsome face. _God_, does time not affect this man. He placed down his book and took off his glasses. "Sakura."

She watched her former lover stand in front of her. "How have you been?"

He glanced downwards and his long lashes brushed his pale cheeks. "I've been doing better. You?"

"I haven't been too bad," she replied with a soft smile. "I've actually missed everyone. That's a reason why I came back."

"Are you here to stay?"

"Yes, I think it wouldn't hurt settling down here again."

"Would. . . Would you like to go get some coffee?"

"I'd like that." He picked his things from the bench and took a few steps before she caught his arm. "Wait, Sasuke." Now would be the best time to gain some closure. "I want to start fresh. I won't forget what we had, but I won't remember the bad times we had to go through." She took a breath and released it slowly. "So let's start over again. Like how it was meant to be, as friends."

He stared at her. "We can never be friends, you know that Sakura." He drew closer to her. "We were never meant to be friends."

"I know." She smiled as she tucked a strand of her pink hair behind her ear. "But, I want a new start. Without the hate and the pain. I want us just to be two people who care for each other."

He shook his head and his long bangs swayed with the slight breeze. "I can't be just your friend. If you want to have me in your life, I will not be just a friend. My offer of back then still stands."

"I know."

"Are you willing to suffer the consequences?" _The consequences of falling in love all over again. Or __the consequences of knowing you never fell out of love in the first place._

"Yes."

He knew then that she had never really moved on either.

"Then," he held out his hand and smirked, "my name is Sasuke Uchiha."

She took his hand and gave it a firm squeeze. "I'm Sakura Haruno."

* * *

_So maybe he was cursed, maybe a witch was angry with his parents and cursed their unborn child, or maybe shit did happen. Maybe he was_ _unlucky when it came to love. He didn't know any of this and he would probably never find the answer to any of it. What he did know, was that he had hated this woman then came to truly love her like nothing in this world. _

_Then he had lost her. _

_And when she returned four years later, with the hopes of rekindling what they had, he wouldn't waste this opportunity, this countless second chance._

* * *

_sometimes, a relationship can't survive, not because of infidelity or violence, but simply because people change. i believe that was the purpose behind 'Swans'.  
_

_thanks for reading, favoriting, reviewing everyone  
_


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